Background-There is a pressing need for brief behavioural interventions to address the intersection of high HIV prevalence, increasing substance use, and high-risk sex practices among South African women. The primary aim of this pilot, randomized trial was to examine whether an adapted evidence-based intervention would be equally, more, or less effective at reducing HIV risk behaviours when delivered using an individual or group format. The secondary aim was to examine differences between Black and Coloured South African women across pre-and post-intervention measures of alcohol and illicit drug use and sex risk behaviours.

Thirty publications that evaluated health care-based interventions for women who experienced sexual violence were reviewed. The findings highlight that clinicians often need training in the provision sexual assault care, and that not all emergency departments have sexual assault care protocols. Studies examining effectiveness found that Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner programs are very helpful, that health care-based sexual assault treatment settings attract more women than do forensic-based settings, that sexual assault survivors often prefer a combination of medication and counseling treatment, and that preexam administration of a video explaining the collection of forensic evidence may reduce women's stress during the procedure. Studies on postexposure HIV prophylaxis found that many women did not complete the treatment regimen, often because of side effects. Emergency contraception to prevent postrape pregnancy is not consistently offered to women. Only one study reported on abortion as part of the range of sexual assault services.

This chapter presents research concerning the effects of sexual violence on women's psychological health, physical health, and behavioral health, as well as research on the economic consequences of this violence. Although sexual violence may be defined in many ways, most studies described here focus on sexual assault or rape. Moreover, the studies allow examination of the impact of sexual violence separate from other types of violence. This chapter focuses on violence during adulthood; however, because most sexual violence research on adults also includes adolescents, some of the reviewed studies include adults and teens. This is not a comprehensive literature review but rather an overview, illustrated with selected research findings. We examine the methods commonly used in these studies and note the gaps in our knowledge. We conclude with recommendations regarding emerging research priorities and methods that may be useful for future studies.

This study examined the association between perceived neighborhood safety and depressive symptoms among 443 out-of-treatment African American crack cocaine users interviewed between 2000 and 2002 in North Carolina and tested the regression of depression on perceived neighborhood safety and common predictors of depression. Perceived neighborhood safety was an important predictor of depressive symptoms in models that adjusted for other correlates of depression. The findings are limited by the cross-sectional nature of the data and the complex etiology and course of depression. Additional research is needed to clarify the relationship between perceived neighborhood safety and depression. The study was supported by the National Institute on Drug Abuse.

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